Weather simulation is often associated with aircraft flight training. Such systems typically provide "out-the-window" displays of the terrain that would be seen during actual flight. In addition to terrain, an enhancement to flight simulation display systems is the simulation of weather conditions, either by simulating the output of weather-sensing instrumentation or by illustrating weather conditions as part of the out-the-window display.
Some existing weather simulation systems provide radar video. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,135,397, 4,667,199, and 4,493,647 are examples of radar output simulators. Other weather simulation systems provide a visual image of the weather. U.S. Pat Nos. 4,199,875, 4,016,658, and 3,826,864 are examples of visual effects simulators.
A problem with existing weather simulation methods is that they do not provide meteorological realism. Cloud formations are not based on real-world weather data, but are modeled by manual composition or digitized from two-dimensional illustrations. Another problem with existing weather simulators is that various simulation subsystems, such as displays of radar, through-the-window, or vehicle motion, are not coordinated with the weather simulation.